Michigan

Editorial: New farm rules

Michigan will buy a pig in a poke if it makes farm policy through the ballot box instead of the Legislature.

That's why bills in the state House are so important. The legislation is a preemptive strike against the Humane Society of the United States, which is considering a ballot measure similar to one passed in California that would mandate standards for farm animal treatment.

The debate points up a hole in Michigan law: There are no standards for farm animal care. The Legislature's plan would mandate a 10-member advisory council that would create standards and would require the Michigan Department of Agriculture to audit farms to make sure they're in compliance.

Whether those rules are exactly the right ones is a matter of hot debate -- including a four-and-a-half hour committee meeting in Lansing Friday. But that's just the right place for the discussion. Letting lawmakers make laws allows for a more thorough process. Hearings can be held. Regulations can be shaped by competing lobbyists. The public can provide input through representatives.

Ballot proposals, by contrast, are put before voters fully formed, and typically represent just one side of the question. Interest groups, sometimes from far outside the state, can pay signature gatherers enough money to put nearly any question before voters. That's not exactly the grass-roots activism the Michigan Constitution intended when it rightly provided an initiative process.

Major election ballots involve a daunting list of races and questions. Adding a lot of initiatives, referendums and constitutional amendments makes a voter's job that much tougher.
Only those who have time to read all news accounts or pore through objective analyses receive a full picture. Because most people don't have that kind of time, advantage tilts toward moneyed interests that can afford to buy television advertising.

We hire lawmakers for a reason. If we don't trust them to do their jobs, we should put them out to pasture. Until then, let them do most of the policy labor, including the farm work.

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